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Sunday, January 20, 2008

Stand mixer Sunday: Honey oat bread

I'm not perfect at this baking thing yet, but I sure do like giving it a try. I was ready for a sweeter bread that maybe my family would actually eat with dinner. My problem so far is I can't get the timing right -- because this house is so cold and drafty, my bread isn't ready until 8 p.m., way past our normal dinner time.

So to be safe, I started making this honey oat bread shortly after breakfast. I was going to be victorious this time!

Start by warming up the following in the microwave until everything is incorporated:

1 and 1/2 cups water

1/2 cup honey

1/3 cup butter

And put into the stand mixer bowl:

4 cups flour

1 cup oatmeal

2 teaspoons salt

1 package yeast

Using the bread hook on the lowest setting, incorporate the wet ingredients into the dry. Add 2 eggs to the mixture and add 1/2 cup flour as needed until it's a smooth, elasticy dough.

Turn out into a greased bowl, moving the dough around to grease the top. Put the dough in a warm, draft-free place in your kitchen, like an empty microwave or oven turned off. Allow it to rise for about an hour or until it's doubled in size.

Punch down the dough and knead it for a couple of minutes. Divide it into two parts and form into loaves, then place in greased loaf pans. Allow to doubled again.

Whisk together one egg white and a tablespoon water. Brush the top of the loaves with it and sprinkle oatmeal on top.

Cook in a 375-degree oven for 35 minutes. It will look quite brown on the top, but it's not burning. Remove from the pans and let them cool on wire racks.

This yielded a delicious bread that was slightly sweet and very filling. It had a toasty crust and looked good on the table.